THE IMPACT OF THE ARAB SPRING ON HOTEL SERVICES IN ISTANBUL
THE IMPACT OF THE ARAB SPRING ON HOTEL SERVICES IN ISTANBUL

Author(s): Mehmet Emin Baynazoglu, Ebru Bilgin, Orhan Akova
Subject(s): Economy, National Economy, Tourism
Published by: Udruženje ekonomista i menadžera Balkana
Keywords: Arab Spring;Tourism;Tourist Profiles;Service Features;
Summary/Abstract: The tourism industry is affected by many different external factors such as war, terrorismand economic crisis and it plays an important role in many aspects for the development of a country.One of the major political events occurred in Arab countries in recent years was Arab Spring. In thisstudy, changes occurring in tourist profiles’ expectations in hospitality services in İstanbul hotels withthe Arab Spring and were studied to reveal changes in the profile of tourists visiting İstanbul. Face toface interview method was used for this qualitative study with 8 senior managers who work in 5-starhotels in Istanbul. The responses obtained were subjected to content analysis and tourism practitioners’perceptions and experiences were applied to them. In the direction of the findings from the interviews,it is observed that there are significant changes in the tourist profiles in the 5-star hotel enterprisesoperating in Istanbul after the Arab Spring which occurred in 2010. This change seems to have causedthe hotels to revise themselves on many issues such as human resources, education, food and beverage,cost control, renovation, and refurbishment.

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